Long catheters are commonly introduced into blood and other vessels during numerous medical procedures. In some procedures, accurate placement within vessels is important and desirable. Generally, guidewires are first inserted into the vessel so that the distal end of the guidewire is at the desired position to be treated. Catheters are provided with a suitable lumen into which the proximal guidewire end is inserted and the catheter is slid over the guidewire or stylet to the desired position.
In addition to difficulties associated with accurate, reproducible catheter placement, handling and manipulation of the catheters in an operating room environment can become unwieldy. Guidewires can create confusion about their use and may be a potential source of contamination during insertion. The need for maintaining sterility and verifying catheter placement is of concern. Of particular emphasis for this product is its application in emergency medicine where catheters need to be inserted quickly to begin therapies. Since there is less time in this environment, simpler more intuitive devices are favored, This environment also puts less emphasis on and has less capability of accommodating a sterile technique during insertion. Lastly this emergency environment often needs to maintain an infusion of fluid medications even before a long catheter is inserted into its final position.